The suggested tools below assume that you have compiled and planned your presentation beforehand.

North by Northwest

YouTube

If you do not have one, you’ll need to create a user account on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/create_account although Google accounts work as well).

You’ll then need to join the YouTube group for your class: http://www.youtube.com/group/persuasions2010

To upload a previously produced video, merely click on the Yellow “Upload a Video” button, and have at it.

You can edit a video directly on Youtube here: http://www.youtube.com/editor. This will allow you to trim and edit together clips; to do minimal transitions; and to insert an audio file from the YouTube audio library (which will completely wipe out the audio in your video).

Here’s a more detailed tutorial.

YouTube will process videos in the following formats: .WMV, .3GP, .AVI, .MOV, .MP4, .MPEG, .FLV, .MKV.

Pros:

  • Easiest interface
  • Editing right in the browser
  • Smoothest embed process
  • Most stable

Cons

  • Fewer editing options than JayCut
  • No custom audio overlay

To embed a video, simply paste the url into your blog post:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wt1Je1JcFNE

JayCut

Free, hosted movie editing software.

  • Upload video, audio
  • Mix using mixing board
    • add transitions, titles, play with audio levels
  • When finished, click “Publish Mix”
    • “On the Web”
    • Export to YouTube
    • Submit video to class channel

Here’s a more detailed tutorial.

And here’s my daughter dancing to Rakim:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZStTsjbmEYk

Xtranormal

Xtranormal is a free text to movie animator that, for a small fee ($5), will allow you to embed and customize a movie.

Pros:

  • Total control

Cons

  • Total control

Embed code will come from completed movie page.

What’s above are just a few of the many amazing tools out there. For more, see Alan Levine’s The Fifty+ Tools. The trick is to pick something easy to use, and embeddable.q